Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is taking a "very serious look" at running for president in 2016, CNN said, citing reports from Republican fundraisers.

CNN's John King said on "Inside Politics" Sunday that until now, most people thought he was not planning to launch a bid, but his contacts are now suggesting otherwise.

"I spoke to several Republican fundraisers this week who got phone calls from Jeb Bush, the former Florida governor, who hasn't said he is going to run, but is starting to ask some serious questions," King said. "So people think that at least he's giving it a very serious look."

Bush said at the end of January that he was not actively considering a presidential run and would defer any decision until later in the year, leaving the door open to speculation about his intentions.

A Washington Post-ABC News poll last month put Bush in second place among six possible 2016 GOP contenders, and The Washington Post said Bush could be a spoiler or savior for the Republican Party should he choose to run.

Cruz is running away from any involvement with the shutdown.Rand is turning RINO... Palin is obsolete and her wigs are pretty obvious now.Perry is probably the best bet out of the bench, and Jeb would destroy him in any debate of substance.

Jeb Bush gets the question at just about every public appearance these days: Will you run for president?

The former Florida governor gives a well-worn answer: "I can honestly tell you that I don't know what I'm going to do." It's an answer that won't satisfy the GOP faithful for much longer.

The scion of the Bush political dynasty will likely be asked the question many times in the coming weeks as he raises his profile with appearances in Tennessee, New Mexico, Nevada and Texas — where he'll bump into another possible 2016 presidential candidate, Hillary Rodham Clinton.

Bush's "yes" or "no" is one of the most significant factors looming over the 2016 Republican presidential contest. A White House bid by the brother and son of presidents would shake up a wide-open GOP field, attract a legion of big-money donors and set up a showdown with the influential tea party movement. Bush has said he'll consult with his family this summer and make a decision by the end of the year.

With New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie facing multiple investigations in a political retribution probe, many Republicans see Bush as a potent alternative: a two-term GOP governor who thrived in the nation's largest swing-voting state and could make the party more inclusive.

Friends and advisers say he is seriously considering a presidential run. His busy schedule will do little to quiet speculation.

This month, Bush is expected to visit New Mexico and Nevada to campaign for Republican governors there, even though both incumbents are widely expected to cruise to re-election. In Las Vegas, he'll address leaders of the Republican Jewish Coalition, an influential political group backed by casino magnate and GOP mega-donor Sheldon Adelson.

And in Dallas next week, Bush is scheduled to co-host an education conference where Clinton is also set to appear.

With no clear frontrunner for the GOP nomination, Bush's standing is rising in early presidential polls and among donors. His popularity with wealthy insiders was on display last month at a Republican fundraiser in the gilded ballroom of Mar-a-Lago, Donald Trump's Palm Beach estate. The night's keynote speaker was a tea party firebrand, Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, but a short video message from Bush received far more applause.

"Jeb is striking a chord amongst many thoughtful donors," said Fred Malek, finance chairman of the Republican Governors Association.

"He's a proven conservative," Malek said. "But at the same time, he is not viewed as extreme or an ideologue and therefore can appeal to the moderate element of the party as well."

Bush would carry both the benefits and the baggage of one of America's most prominent political dynasties. Its patriarch, George H.W. Bush, was elected to one term in 1988; his son, George W. Bush, served two presidential terms beginning in 2001. The family's vast fundraising network and political connections, in addition to Jeb Bush's own constellation of donors and advisers, could fuel a formidable campaign. A senior adviser at the financial firm Barclays, Jeb Bush remains a favorite of the Wall Street set.

But the shadow of his older brother's controversial presidency still looms. The family's matriarch, former first lady Barbara Bush, has repeatedly spoken of the potential for Bush fatigue, saying, "If we can't find more than two or three families to run for high office, that's silly."

A Washington Post-ABC News poll this month signaled head winds Jeb Bush could face: nearly half of all Americans, and 50 percent of registered voters, said they "definitely would not" vote for him for president.

Nevertheless, friends and advisers say, he is mulling a bid and reaching out to influential donors.

"He is seriously considering this, but he is not following the timeline that the pundits or the press would like him to follow," said Sally Bradshaw, Bush's former chief of staff.

Bush briefly considered a presidential campaign in 2012 but declined to run.

"It's much more serious this time," said Slater Bayliss, a lobbyist and former Bush aide. "The question for him is whether he's willing to make the sacrifices that he's seen his brother and his dad make at a time in his life when he's having an impact on policy issues he cares about."

Bush has spent much of his post-governorship studying education policy and advocating for the kinds of changes he pioneered in Florida, including publicly-funded private school vouchers and stricter accountability standards for teachers and students. At the same time, he has promoted overhauling the nation's immigration system and providing a path to citizenship for millions of immigrants who are here illegally, an intensely personal effort. His wife, Columba, grew up in Mexico. The two met while Bush was an exchange student there; she is now an American citizen. Bush speaks fluent Spanish.

His personal story and immigration advocacy could help him connect with Latinos, a group that Republicans have long struggled to court.

"He needs no briefing sheets when it comes to what's important to Hispanics," said Ana Navarro, a Bush friend and GOP strategist.

But the former Florida governor's education and immigration efforts would likely put him at odds with conservative activists.

Bush has been a champion of so-called "Common Core" academic standards, which were developed by a bipartisan group of governors and state school officials and later promoted by the Obama administration. Many conservatives see them as a federal takeover of local classrooms. Likewise, anti-immigration activists have battled Bush-backed immigration legislation in Congress that they consider "amnesty" for lawbreakers.

"We're seeing from Jeb Bush's actions that he likes having a government that has much more say in people's lives," said Jenny Beth Martin, co-founder of Tea Party Patriots.

Over the past two years, in speeches and public appearances, Bush has chafed at what he calls "purity tests" inside the GOP, saying both his father and former President Ronald Reagan would struggle in the tea party era.

Citing a scheduling conflict, he declined an invitation to speak this month at the Conservative Political Action Conference, the country's largest annual gathering of conservative activists.

"I'm a conservative and I'm a practicing one, not a talk-about-it one," Bush said last year.

In Florida, Bush slashed billions of dollars in taxes, toughened crime laws and revamped the state's education system. But he has refused to sign the anti-tax pledge that many activists now consider sacrosanct. He has told Republicans the party needs to shed the perception that it's "anti-everything."

Allies and adversaries alike question whether Bush, a policy wonk who often talks about "big, hairy, audacious goals," could stomach the hyper-partisanship and gridlock in Washington.

"He's accustomed to moving an agenda," said Dan Gelber, a former state senator and Democratic leader who often tussled with Bush in Tallahassee, "and I think he's got to be wondering how he would do that."

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is being encouraged to seek the 2016 Republican presidential nomination in a low-key campaign effort by Mitt Romney's former financial and political backers, The Washington Post reports.

Bush is seen as someone who can best unite the party as a viable alternative to New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who has stumbled politically over the Bridge-gate affair.

Urgent: Do You Approve Or Disapprove of President Obama's Job Performance? Vote Now in Urgent Poll

Among those courting Bush are casino billionaire Sheldon Adelson, who hosted the son and brother of former presidents at a Los Vegas dinner for financial heavyweights where Bush was showered with encouragement to enter the race. The "vast majority" of Romney's biggest contributors would reportedly support Bush, according to the Post.

Among Bush's selling points is that he is viewed favorably by the party's establishment, and just as importantly, by evangelicals who are an important force in GOP primaries. He is known as someone who thinks seriously about public policy issues, and has the added advantage of being fluent in Spanish. Analysts say that to win the presidency, the GOP will need to reach out to Hispanic voters. Moreover, Bush's wife Columba was born in Mexico.

The former governor, meanwhile, has been traveling the country— though not the early primary states— making speeches and campaigning for Republican candidates. He would consider a run if he could do it "joyfully" and be an uplifting force, he said in January. His veteran political counselor Sally Bradshaw describes him as "methodical," "thoughtful," and set to make a decision about the presidency by the end of 2014, the Post reported.

Bush has written a book advocating immigration reform, campaigned for common core education standards, embraced the traditional GOP foreign policy agenda, opposed Medicaid expansion, and has told audiences that the nation is experiencing a lack of economic mobility and a crisis of opportunity.

Bush's disadvantages as a candidate, analysts say, include his having been away from the political fray for seven years, leaving him out of practice in adeptly addressing issues that have divided the party.

"It'd be a little odd to nominate someone who was last in office in 2006, who hasn't been politically involved at all, in any significant way, in the Obama years," said Weekly Standard Editor William Kristol.

There is also the matter of "Bush fatigue" – rising above the presidential legacies of his father, George H.W. Bush, and brother, George W. Bush, when 48 percent of all Americans recently polled said they "definitely would not" vote for another Bush to be president, the Post reported.

Jeb is for illegal immigration.I don't see him even making an effort to reduce wasteful spending.Another RINO.You knw he is a RINO when the same people that supported Romney want him over Paul and Cruz.If he somehow becomes the GOP candidate, I will not be voting for the 1st time in a while.

Jeb brings "gravitas". People look at him and they know he will hold his own on the world stage. Bush 1 did, and bush 2 did, to a lesser extent. They know Jeb will do a solid job as prez. He might start a few oil wars, but the ship isn't sinking on his watch.

On the other hand, I think most of the other repubs are relative newbies. Rand, rubio, cruz... all first-term, right? There's Perry, who is still my pick for prez, cause he's just about got that gravitas.

You know the look when a politician puts on that phony smile cause they're desperate to win? When they don't have that "i'm a major league a-hole, and I don't give a crap if you disagree with me"... people RESPECT that, even if they don't like it. Cheney had it. Hilary has it. Jeb has it. That cold blooded, ice water in veins approach to things. Sure, they smile, but they have the ability to look you in eye and tell you to fck off. Romney didn't have it. Obama was a little bit colder than Romney, since he had 4 years in office + killed bin laden, and the office of potus does harden one up. Rudy had it.

Rubio, martinez... they turn into giggles and catch phrases and just, well, soft, when they're in a big room. Martinez just keeps tossing out gun phrases like red meat to the masses... but I've yet to see her hard and serious on a national stage.

Jeb, hilary, bush 1, cheney... they will stare you down. They will stare down putin. They don't gives a fuck. that is what wins elections. Jeb has it. Perry is getting there. So I think it'll be one of these cats with the serious gravitas that'll win the GOP nomination, not a newbie that cracks a smile when nervous.

If it's not Paul or Cruz, it's a sure defeat for 2016 and deservingly so.

I like cruz a lot. I like rand, but his new stance supporting amnesty is troubling for me... I don't think the illegals should be allowed to stay here, and he does.

I do think Jeb would have a serious, experienced gravitas that Cruz doesn't. But I do like Cruz' positions much better.

However, we know repubs... they're begging to get a RINO in there.... Already you hear the big romney fanboys from 2012 suddenly saying Christie is somehow cleared from a report that his people wrote lol...

If it's not Paul or Cruz, it's a sure defeat for 2016 and deservingly so.

I think it's too early to predict. A lot of the candidates look good on paper, but they need to go through the process. Remember Perry? I watched a speech and looked at his background, the performance of the state under his watch, and thought he was a terrific candidate. Then the debates happened . . . .

I want to see candidates on both sides go through the primaries. Actually, if Hillary runs there will just be a coronation on the Democrat side.

Jeb Bush: Many illegal immigrants come out of an ‘act of love’BY ED O'KEEFEApril 6, 2014

Former Florida governor Jeb Bush said Sunday that many who illegally come to the United States do so out of an "act of love" for their families and should be treated differently than people who illegally cross U.S. borders or overstay visas.

The comments came during an event marking the 25th anniversary of the presidency of George H. W. Bush at the library and museum that bears the name of the Bush patriarch. The event was closed to reporters, but moderated by Fox News anchor Shannone Bream and portions of the event were later broadcast on the Fox News Channel.

Asked about immigration, Bush started by saying that a bipartisan bill passed by the Senate last year made "a good effort" at proposing ways to ensure that people overstaying visas leave the country.

"A great country ought to know where those folks are and politely ask them to leave," he said, adding later that properly targeting people who overstay visas "would restore people's confidence" in the nation's immigration system.

"There are means by which we can control our border better than we have. And there should be penalties for breaking the law," he added. "But the way I look at this -- and I'm going to say this, and it'll be on tape and so be it. The way I look at this is someone who comes to our country because they couldn’t come legally, they come to our country because their families -- the dad who loved their children -- was worried that their children didn’t have food on the table. And they wanted to make sure their family was intact, and they crossed the border because they had no other means to work to be able to provide for their family. Yes, they broke the law, but it’s not a felony. It’s an act of love. It’s an act of commitment to your family. I honestly think that that is a different kind of crime that there should be a price paid, but it shouldn’t rile people up that people are actually coming to this country to provide for their families."

The comments clearly set Bush apart from other Republicans, especially some considering runs for president in 2016. Even Bush seemed to acknowledge that his position could cause him political trouble as he mulls whether to run for president.

In 2012, Texas Gov. Rick Perry drew criticism for defending a law allowing illegal immigrants in Texas to pay in-state tuition by suggesting that people opposed to the measure were insensitive.

“If you say that we should not educate children who have come into our state for no other reason than they have been brought there by no fault of their own, I don’t think you have a heart,” Perry said during a GOP debate in Florida.

The comments were later panned by Perry's Republican opponents.

At the same event Sunday, Bush said he would make a decision by the end of this year about whether to run for president in 2016.

Jeb Bush: Many illegal immigrants come out of an ‘act of love’BY ED O'KEEFEApril 6, 2014

Former Florida governor Jeb Bush said Sunday that many who illegally come to the United States do so out of an "act of love" for their families and should be treated differently than people who illegally cross U.S. borders or overstay visas.

This is evidence that he is a CINO. He has shown himself to be a liberal. This guy is not going to enforce the rule of law. He is not going to close the border. With this comment, he should be eliminated from any serious consideration by any self-respecting conservative.

Are we not a nation of laws? I wonder how many people present that type of defense when they steal, commit fraud or assault someone. "Well, judge, I did it because I love my kids." "Oh, ok, that's a great reason."

How about the people who are following the law and waiting patiently for their citizenship? Do they love their families any less because they are not crossing the border and risking their lives?

WOW I was shocked to read Bush thought it was 100% cool to break US laws because the country you live in happens to suck. I hope he doesn't apply the same standard to illegals from iraq or other parts of the world. Maybe he only means it's cool for hispanic voters to illegally move here?

HORRIBLE thing for him to say - completely surrendering to illegals and really spitting all over the rule of law. Cue the LIBERAL-ASS republicans among us to say it's so great he's embracing the lawbreakers. After all, I guess the (insert any criminal name here) had to feed their kids too - maybe bank robbery is just an act of love now, too? Perhaps I can rob my cabbie today because "I got a family to feed". Guess what... the cabbie does, too.

This is evidence that he is a CINO. He has shown himself to be a liberal. This guy is not going to enforce the rule of law. He is not going to close the border. With this comment, he should be eliminated from any serious consideration by any self-respecting conservative.

Are we not a nation of laws? I wonder how many people present that type of defense when they steal, commit fraud or assault someone. "Well, judge, I did it because I love my kids." "Oh, ok, that's a great reason."

How about the people who are following the law and waiting patiently for their citizenship? Do they love their families any less because they are not crossing the border and risking their lives?

That comment by Jeb is the most idiotic argument for amnesty.

Unfortunately, I don't think anyone who wants to be the nominee is going to take a hard line on immigration. And it's sad that "hard line" really means nothing more than enforcing the law.

Unfortunately, I don't think anyone who wants to be the nominee is going to take a hard line on immigration. And it's sad that "hard line" really means nothing more than enforcing the law.

Ted Cruz would disagree. He's just some cardio + serious weight training away from being your next president.

Bush is to the left of obama on this issue now lol. Dems talking about logistics and economic... Jeb is just doing it because he has so much love for people in other countries. Not for those living here

Ted Cruz would disagree. He's just some cardio + serious weight training away from being your next president.

Bush is to the left of obama on this issue now lol. Dems talking about logistics and economic... Jeb is just doing it because he has so much love for people in other countries. Not for those living here

BB, you don't have to surrender to amnesty quite yet!

I haven't surrendered to anything. Just stating the obvious. Both the Democrat and Republican nominees are going to support some form of amnesty.

Dirk Van Dongen has raised money for Republican presidential candidates for three decades and will be a financial force for Florida Senator Marco Rubio’s 2016 presidential campaign –- if Jeb Bush doesn’t run.

He’s not the only fundraiser parked in neutral. Bush’s indecision is keeping Republican money and operatives on the sidelines much the way former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s possible bid is blocking her would-be Democratic opponents from making inroads with the party’s donor class.

“Both of them effectively freeze in place your fundraising cadre on both sides,” said Van Dongen, president of the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors. “They are both the 800-pound gorilla in their respective field.”

The 2016 presidential race at this stage is an inverse of the 1988 election, said Anthony Corrado, a professor specializing in campaign finance at Colby College in Waterville, Maine.

Back then, Vice President George H.W. Bush entered the Republican primary with a dominant political and fundraising apparatus -- his Christmas card list included 250,000 names, Corrado recalled -- while Democrats waited in vain for New York Governor Mario Cuomo to enter the race.

‘Seven Dwarfs’

When the Cuomo opted not to run, the party was left with the “Seven Dwarfs,” a nickname for the second-tier candidates who competed for a nomination that eventually went to Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis. Dukakis lost to Bush, 426 to 111 in the Electoral College and by seven percentage points in the popular vote.

The Democratic nomination race “shaped up late, and the way it did, because of the waiting to see what Mario Cuomo would do,” Corrado said.

The danger for Republicans in 2016 is that an establishment freeze brought on by New Jersey Governor Chris Christie’s home- town bridge scandal and Bush’s reticence could leave the party’s eventual nominee lagging in preparation behind Clinton, whose supporters already are building voter and donor lists.

It’s the e-mail lists that count in modern politics, said Nicco Mele, a lecturer at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and former web strategist for Democrat Howard Dean’s 2004 presidential run.

If Clinton runs, she’ll have access to the names of more than 2 million supporters through Ready for Hillary, one of several super-political action committees backing her.

Clinton Machine

Ready for Hillary had raised more than $4 million by the end of 2013, including a check from billionaire financier George Soros, according to filings with the Federal Election Commission. Another big-money group, Priorities USA Action, is packing its board and staff with former Clinton hands such as Hollywood liaison Andy Spahn.

Clinton also has a traditional donor network, having raised $230 million for her 2008 Democratic primary race against President Barack Obama.

Ben Barnes, the former lieutenant governor of Texas and a top Democratic donor for congressional and presidential campaigns, said the challenge for other prospective Democratic White House contenders, including Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley, who want to build their war chests is that they, too, must remain patient.

“I’m sure Governor O’Malley recognizes there’s an obvious wait-and-see on what Secretary of State Clinton’s going to do,” Barnes said.

Clinton, 66, said yesterday that while she is contemplating a presidential candidacy, she isn’t in a hurry to decide. “I’m not going to make a decision for a while because I’m actually enjoying my life,” she said at an appearance in San Francisco.

Bush’s Itinerary

Bush, who left the governor’s office seven years ago, has stoked speculation with some of his recent travels. Late last month, the son of one president and brother of another was in Las Vegas at an event where he spent time with billionaire Republican donor and casino owner Sheldon Adelson -- something Rubio did a year earlier. Christie also attended this year’s gathering.

Rubio recently said he’d decide on a presidential run early next year and that Bush’s path wouldn’t affect his own, although he considers the former governor a mentor.

“I think people make decisions based on themselves, not on what someone else is going to do,” Rubio, 42, said during a Reuters Health Summit in Washington.

Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, a former member of House Republican leadership in Washington, said Bush, 61, has the luxury of time because of his universal name recognition and deep ties to a national network of contributors.

“There is a broad swath of donors who are waiting to see what Jeb’s decision is,” Putnam said.

Christie Advantage

There are Republican candidates who stand to benefit from Bush putting everyone else in a holding pattern.

If Christie, 51, can extricate himself from the grips of the George Washington Bridge lane-closure investigation, he may gain from donor idling in these early months.

As chairman of the Republican Governors Association, Christie is meeting with contributors and raising money for the party’s statehouse candidates. Christie generated a record $23.5 million in the first three months of this year for the RGA.

Last month, he attended a fundraiser for Governor Rick Snyder in Grand Rapids, Michigan. During the event, billionaire Richard DeVos, founder of Amway Corp. in Ada, Michigan and owner of the National Basketball League’s Orlando Magic in Florida, expressed support for a Christie 2016 run, according to a person in the room not authorized to speak to the media.

Nick Wasmiller, an Amway and DeVos spokesman, declined comment.

Waiting Game

“Smart money” is going to wait on what Bush or Christie decide about making a run, said Julian Zelizer, a history professor at Princeton University in New Jersey, “so it’s hard for anyone else to make a real pitch at this point.”

That could be a good thing for the party, said Scott Reed, a political strategist for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, a Washington-based business trade group, and manager of Republican presidential nominee Bob Dole’s 1996 campaign.

“A good, healthy fight on the Republican side will create a strong candidate,” he said.

Among other prospective candidates, Senators Rand Paul, 51,

of Kentucky and Ted Cruz, 43, of Texas have made the most progress in building support, Mele said. Those two leveraged legislative fights -- Paul on National Security Administration surveillance programs and Cruz on repealing Obama’s Affordable Care Act -- as e-mail-list boosters, he said.

Representative Jason Chaffetz of Utah, who is close to 2012 nominee Mitt Romney, said calls for Indiana Governor Mike Pence, 54, to join the field will grow in the coming months.

“There’s a lot of behind the scenes chatter and not yet a whole lot of attention about him,” Chaffetz said, arguing that Bush, in part because of his name, isn’t the best candidate.

“That ‘Bush’ hurdle is a big one,” Chaffetz said. “I think he’d probably actually be a very good president, but I shudder to think that we’re going to go back and have another Bush-Clinton discussion. Can’t we move on?”

Potential presidential contender Jeb Bush defended his "act of love" comments about illegal immigrants on Thursday while also saying he believes immigration laws must be enforced.

The former Florida governor came under fire from GOP conservatives this week for saying that people who had come to America illegally to provide a better life for their families "broke the law, but it's not a felony, it's an act of love."

On Thursday night, he attempted to explain his controversial remarks during a speech in Connecticut at the annual Prescott Bush Award dinner named after his grandfather, according to Politico.

"This past weekend, I made some statements about immigration reform [that] generated a little more news than I anticipated," the younger brother of former President George W. Bush told the 700 guests.

"You know, I've been saying this for the last three or four years. I said the exact same thing that I've said regularly. And the simple fact is, there is no conflict between enforcing our laws, believing in the rule of law and having some sensitivity to the immigrant experience, which is part of who we are as a country."

Bush, who has been a longtime advocate of immigration reform, added, "It is not an American value to allow people to stay in the shadows." He was referring to the millions of undocumented immigrants who live and work in the country illegally while hoping one day to attain legal status.

As an example, Bush singled out a high school athlete at Miami Beach High School who's been in the United States since he was a young boy but who had recently been ordered to return to "to his native land." Bush said that the message the teen was being told was, "You're not worthy of being successful in our country."

"To be young and dynamic again we have to be young and dynamic again," Bush added, saying that Americans need to look on "immigration reform not as a problem, but as a huge opportunity."

His "act of love" statement had riled up conservatives and other GOP lawmakers who oppose any form of pathway to citizenship or "amnesty" for illegals.

"We appreciate the compassion in the statement, but the best compassion you can show a people is to uphold justice," said Tamara Scott, a Republican National Committee member and leading Christian conservative from Iowa, according to The Associated Press.

Bush's comments were praised by some Republicans who are hoping to capture Hispanic votes in the November midterm elections and in 2016. In 2012, more than 70 percent of Hispanics voted for President Barack Obama over GOP nominee Mitt Romney.

"The worst thing that can happen to a political party is not for voters to decide they don't like you," Alex Castellanos, a GOP consultant and former Romney adviser, told AP. "It's for voters to decide you don't like them. And that's where the Republican Party is right now."

The Senate passed a comprehensive immigration reform package last year, but House Speaker John Boehner said in February there was little chance of immigration laws being passed in the House this year because of fears the Obama administration cannot be trusted to enforce the laws.

Jeb Bush, who is weighing a presidential bid for 2016, indicated in his speech on Thursday that immigration is a personal matter to him because he met his Mexican-born wife of 40 years, Columbia, while he was an exchange student in that country.

"Forty years of marriage for me is a big darn deal and I love her very much," he said.

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) defended former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R) against conservative criticism over Bush’s comments that some illegal immigration is an “act of love.”

In an interview that aired Sunday on ABC’s “This Week,” Paul said that Bush "might have been more artful, maybe, in the way he presented this, but I don’t want to say, ‘Oh he’s terrible for saying this.’ ”

Bush faced backlash from conservatives after making his comments. On Saturday in New Hampshire, where Paul was conducting his own interview, billionaire Donald Trump’s mention of the governor and his comments at a conservative conference drew boos from the crowd.

Paul has been traveling the nation over the past six months trying to expand the GOP’s appeal, and frequently counsels the need for the party to be seen as more compassionate and welcoming.

On Sunday, he preached compassion toward illegal immigrants, but said such a message needs to include an emphasis on border control as well.

Paul said his message would be that “people who seek the American Dream are not bad people ... however, we can't invite the whole world."

“When you say they’re doing an act of love and you don’t follow it up with, ‘We have to control the border,’ people think, ‘Well, because they’re doing this for kind reasons, the whole world can come to our country,’ ” he added.

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) defended former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush (R) against conservative criticism over Bush’s comments that some illegal immigration is an “act of love.”

Rand wants the VP slot. Common sense says, if Jeb throws his hat into the ring, he will have the best chance of winning it. name, experience, connections, money.

Rand may play it safe during the debates, if he and jeb are both in it. Cruz will be the wildcard, and the RINOs that kneepadded for Mccain and romney will just looooove the "conservative" approach to amnesty offered by the Jeb/Rand ticket.